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Congratulations to Working Mother's Best Companies for Dads!

What do you call a working parent juggling day care drop-off and diaper duty?
Increasingly, you call him dad.
And now, dad-friendly companies are getting a giant-sized shoutout from an unlikely source: Working Mother.
"We recognized it was time for us to celebrate the organizations helping men be the best dads they can," said Working Mother, the company behind the best companies for moms list for 35 years.
"So, we created Working Mother's first Best Companies for Dads list."

Setting the Bar for Best Companies for Dads -- and Moms

The first-of-its kind list went back to the reams of Working Mother data and identified 35 trendsetters raising the bar for everyone. What's it take to be named? How about parental leave for dads as well as moms, affinity groups for male parents, and assistance to help take care of the kids.
Need more? Check out cultures set up to allow dads to actually use those great benefits. That's a bigger deal than you think. Men and women can only share the load when the boss agrees to let them. As Working Mother's editor in chief so well put it on LinkedIn: "Working Moms Won't Get More Support at Home Until Dads Get More Support at Work (Seriously)." At these companies, there's no snarling at dads for putting family first: 85 percent of men use the flexible schedules available to them, 82 percent telecommute at least some of the time.
"What's going to make a difference is having a culture that not only has these policies for fathers but also promotes the idea that dad as caregiver is just as important as mom as caregiver," Boston College's Center for Work & Family's Brad Harrington told Working Mother.
"Dads want to be and are capable of being good caregivers, and their role in the home should be treated with as much respect as moms' role in the workplace."
Forgive us -- we just got a little teary.

Dads Who Can Parent, Moms Who Can Work

All this attention to male bonding isn't just for show. Dads told our Modern Family Index that parenting ranks high on their list of priorities and they're willing to sacrifice even pay for a company that respects that.
And here's another fun fact -- those extra man hours are preserving women's careers, too. Men who can take care of children help women take care of careers. One dad told Working Mother about his wife's post-baby return to work -- something made infinitely easier by his stay-at-home-dad stint during her first days back on the job. "His ability to take leave," wrote Working Mother, " lessened the likelihood of her offramping and potentially losing career trajectory." Good news for dad, mom...and employer.

A giant shoutout to all the winners on this year's Best Companies for Dads list -- and another "woo-hoo!" to our clients (28 of 35!)...and all the dedicated dads they're supporting.
We know June's still months away, but we'll say it anyway -- Happy Father's Day!

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About the Author

Lisa Oppenheimer

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As Director, Brand Storytelling at Bright Horizons, Lisa writes “from the trenches” about the real life challenges of people in today’s workplaces: from the tensions of being a working mother, to working with millennials in the digital age, and everything in between. With a career ranging from freelance to full-time, Lisa brings a diverse employment background to her perspective.